Seabed geology data: stakeholder consultation

The Crown Estate uses cutting-edge data to create safe, sustainable and cost-effective new opportunities for future developments in line with commitments to net zero and nature recovery. BGS has been approached by The Crown Estate to undertake a project aimed at better understanding the current and future requirements for national-scale seabed geology and shallow subsurface information across multiple marine sectors with a focus on offshore renewables, linear assets and nature. The project builds on previous collaboration between BGS and The Crown Estate in 2014, which developed a series of geological factor maps relevant to offshore seabed activities. The availability of new data and techniques provides a timely opportunity to review evolving needs.

The new project will firstly assess the extent to which existing primary and derived seabed geology data meets current requirements, and then determine the needs and specifications for a new dedicated UK-wide compilation. To ensure we capture user needs, we would very much like to hear from spatial planners, asset managers, developers, consultants, researchers, and anyone else who works with seabed geology information.

We are interested to hear how stakeholders access and use national-scale seabed geology data, about any associated challenges or limitations experienced, and where new additions and improvements could be made. This 20-minute questionnaire will provide an opportunity for you to tell us about your needs.

Please submit responses by Friday 18th October.

An initial review based on published papers and reports has highlighted several key requirements relevant to national-scale planning and initial desk study assessments for offshore renewables. This helps form an initial understanding of current needs but is by no means a complete list. Input from this project will help prioritise these and identify additional requirements. Note, anthropogenic themes (for example dredging and extraction) are not included at present.

Your input is highly valuable to BGS and The Crown Estate, and we would like to thank all participants for their time. If you have any questions about the survey, please contact the BGS Offshore Data Team (offshoredata@bgs.ac.uk).